Orania gets club rugby shot

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Cape Town - The Orania Rebels, a rugby team from the unofficial Afrikaner state, have been allowed to play in Griquas’ club rugby league.

According to Rapport, the “non-transformed xv” will make their debut after no other clubs in the region objected to their inclusion.

Winston du Plessis, the union's deputy representative in the Kimberley region, in which Orania falls, said: “It's about rugby and the Rebels are good.”

Griquas president Hennie van der Merwe said Orania should be given a fair chance. “Let's see what happens. They are prepared to play against everyone and any team can come to Orania and play them.

“I haven’t received any complaints about this. In any case, how many other white teams are there?”

Quintin Diederichs, the executive head of the Orania Rebels, said the formation of the team will be “culture driven, and not politically driven”.

"We will play as an Afrikaner team, not a white team. Any quota in sports teams goes against sportsmanship. We live in a country where many young Afrikaners don't get opportunities because of affirmative action. We are reaching out to these guys through rugby.”

Meanwhile, SARU CEO Jurie Roux was not immediately available for comment. His spokesperson, Andy Colquhoun, did point to the fact that there are rugby teams in South Africa which only consist of black players.

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